Europe in space must “strengthen its strategic independence” undermined by the war in Ukraine. Talent will not be enough. To achieve this, Josef Aschbacher, Director General of the European Space Agency (ESA), asks the 22 Member States for a 25% budget increase compared to 2019, that is, an amount of 18.7 billion euros.
It also follows the example of China. “When you look at the results in rockets, satellites, missions to the Moon and Mars…it’s impressive, and certainly we’re at double-digit growth there, too.”
In these countries, private investment weighs more and more. According to ESA’s Director General, Europe lags behind its competitors.
security and independence
Difficulties in obtaining funds have increased with the war in Ukraine. This situation has even reinforced Europe’s dependence on the United States. It also wrecked the Russian-European ExoMars mission and deprived Europe of Soyuz rocket launches.
It recommends that Europe strengthen its capabilities, its autonomy of access to space and its strategic independence. And for that, we must “accelerate our investments, otherwise we will get out of the race.”
The ESA chief points out two effects of the war in space. First, the difficulty of obtaining funds, but also the awareness of the importance of space for the security and independence of Europeans.
Source: BFM TV
